iPhone and Mobile Telecom in the Pacific Rim

Posts Tagged ‘Masayoshi Son’

Two major Japanese wireless carriers announced quarterly earnings today, and amidst the flurry of numbers and “analyst speak,” iPhone drew considerable attention and was featured in many post earnings write-ups.

Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son attributes much of Softbank’s current success to the iPhone. During a post earnings press briefing, Son shared his enthusiasm; “If you (reporters) don’t have an iPhone, you should, it will change the way you view your life.”

Son was happy to report that iPhone’s has been the #1 or #2 top seller for Softbank since it was introduced. He explained that most new phones are popular for a short time and then drop off quickly. As Son put it; “There has been no phone which kept its ranking like this constantly in the history of cell phones.”

Here are a few additional Masayoshi Son quotes from today’s Softbank briefing. Special thanks to Boxerconan for assistance with the translation from Japanese to English…

“Before the introduction of iPhone 3G last July, there were many doubters, however iPhone maintained its top sales ranking. If we had more, we could have increased our bottom line. The inventory level of 3GS is very low.”

“iPhone can be considered as a ‘mobile PC’. And the experience you have with an iPhone is not like a netbook.”

“I use PC 1/10 if the time I used to, but now I surf the Internet 10 times more via my iPhone. It is decisively a life changing experience. I wonder how I had done without an iPhone.”

“I am not saying ‘iPhone is everything’. But I am anticipating that all the cell phones will be iPhone-like in 3 years.”